Caching was a necessary storage method in the past, because of the large amounts of fish that were being stored. Typically, caches were placed in trees or on stilted structures to prevent access from terrestrial animals and to keep the majority of insects away (although it should be mentioned that insects are not really a threat to dried, smoked or salted salmon, as most insects are looking for decaying or rotting meats). In addition, these high locations kept the damp and ground-based moulds off the cached goods. Notched ladders were located near or at the caches and the resources that were cached were stored in some form of basket or box.